Former Google employees who were made redundant during their already-organized time off are not being paid for the full duration of their absence, reports have claimed.
According to CNBC, a group of over 100 workers calling itself ‘Laid off on Leave’ is urging Google to “honor the terms of [their] original parental and/or disability leave arrangements for all leaves that were approved as of January 20, 2023.”
Those affected include workers approved for maternity leave, medical leave, and more, however Google appears to be sticking to its existing termination package by the word.
Google redundancy payouts
In a memo to employees early in 2023, Google CEO Sundar Pichai explained that despite reducing its headcount by about 6%, or 12,000 workers, comparably favorable packages had been put together including a minimum of 60 days’ notice, at least 16 weeks’ salary with an additional two weeks’ salary for each additional year at Google, and six months of healthcare and other support services.
CNBC has since revealed that workers who had already had time off approved before the notification are being treated as per the generic terms above, meaning that any further time off has seemingly been unauthorized.
The report highlights three separate occasions on which the ‘Laid off on Leave’ group had written to executives including Pichai and Chief People Officer Fiona Cicconi, citing Amazon’s efforts to honor laid-off workers’ existing time off, however they have not yet received a response.
The precise details of the extended healthcare promise have also unveiled themselves in recent months, with many laid-off workers now reporting that their access to medical staff at the company’s One Medical facility had been cut off, often during treatment, with some being told to find alternative arrangements.
A Google spokesperson told TechRadar Pro:
"Regarding leave, in the U.S. departing employees are eligible to receive stock and salary for their 60+ day notice period, as well as a separate severance payment, comprising salary and accelerated stock vesting for at least 16 weeks (plus 2 weeks for every year of service). As we shared with impacted employees, we benchmarked this package to ensure the care we’re providing compares favorably with other companies, including for Googlers on leave."
They also explained that the process is taking longer in other countries "due to local laws and processes."
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